Machine and method for forming fiber webs



Oct. 19, 194:;

MACHINE AND METHOD FOR FORMING FIBER WEBS Filed May 1, 1946 F. BURESH 3 ShetsSheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

Oct. 19, 1948. Y F. M. BURESH 5 MACHINE AND METHOD FOR FORMING FIBER WEBS Filed May 1, 1945 s Sheets-Sheet 2 IN Vm TOR. 1. 971 Ba/1966 lilromvsx Oct. 19, 1948. uR s I 2,451,915

MACHINE AND METHOD FOR FORMING FIBER WEBS Filed May 1, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. i i/'7. Bares/2 IITORHEK Patented Oct. 19, 1948 MACHINE AND METHOD FOR FORMING ma WEBS Francis M. Bureah, Blandford, Ma-., alslgnor of r. Bureah, Cedar Rapids,

one-half to George Iowa Application my I, 1948, Serial No. 086,445

'1 Claims. (CI. 1H9) l The invention relates to a fibre web forming machine. and to the method of production of the material therefrom, and more especially to a random textile fibre web making apparatus and its method of operation.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of an apparatus ofthis character, wherein the resultantmaterial produced thereby has its fibre disposed at random, the fibre strands being disposed in all directions following longitudinal and crosswise disposition at random in a plane common to the sheet formation of the finished product. This is in contradistinction to directions upwardly or downwardly following the thickness or depth of the product with the present invention, a uniformity of strength results in the prod-v uct equally in the longitudinal and crosswise directions throughout the extent of the product, thus providing tear resistance in the finished product, both longitudinally and crosswise thereof. T

Another object of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character, wherein the random textile fibre web is created thereby without either spinning or weaving. This apparatus will break down a conventional cotton picker lap to the fibre by fibre state and produce an absolutely uniform web having a random arrangement of fibre, because the picker lap is firmly held so that single fibres are combed and drawn out of it under an impact or shock load by a lickerin roll, one by one, rather than in slugs or tufts, and the fibres are doifed from the licker-in roll by a suction air stream, and deposited on a screen in uniform web formation.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an app ratus of this character, wherein the method of producing the textile fibre web is novel in its entirety, and unique in the steps of procedure thereof, and with which finished products having a wide variety of industrial, home, farm, personal, hospital and surgical uses may be produced. Thus, with this invention, insulation materials, filters, for milk and for chemical purposes etc.; felts for use as upholstery fillers, linoleum bases, reinforcements for molded plastic materials, and lineoleum felt li ings; textiles I for curtains, draperies, mattresses. table cloths,

napkins, rug cushions, tea bags, etc.; various articles of personal use such as disposable towels, tissues, sanitary napkins, fillers therefor, padding and interlinings for clothes, diapers, etc., and various articles for hospital and surgical uses, such as surgical dressings, dental towels, and disposable toweling may be made.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character, wherein there is produced a cotton web having a random arrangement of fibres; free from layered eifect, with equal strength and other properties in all directions of the plane of the web and weighing varying amounts which include the range approximately of 200 to 2000 grains per square yard, and useable with or without a bond- 8 medium.

A still further object ofthe invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character, which is simple in construction, thoroughly reliable and efficient in operation, strong, durable, automatic in the working thereof, possessed of few parts, thus economical in repairs and replacements, and inexpensive to manufacture and install.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which disclose the preferred embodiment of the invention, and pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view taken through an apparatus constructed in accordance with the invention for carrying out the method of production of the invention.

'Figure 2 is a top plan view of this apparatus.

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 3-4 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows. I

Figure 4 is a. transverse sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views in the drawings.

Referring to the drawings in detail, It designates a lap bed in the form of a flat horizontally disposed plate section III, which has a smooth upper surface and is rigidly supported in any suitable manner at the 'fibre intake end of the machine, for receiving a mass of unorganized flexible fibre or a conventional cotton picker lap denoted at il. Confronting this lap bed II at its inner end is a licker-in rotor II, which has its peripheral licker-in teeth ll of special design and projecting radially therefrom, the design of each tooth being similar to a saw blade tooth,

reversely beveled with an outward pointed taper thereto, and a slight pitch inwardly at its lowermost edge.

The plate section II, at its inner edge next to the rotor l2 has built thereon an upstanding nosing riser curbing portion 14 over which is fed the mass ll into contact with the teeth I! of the rotor H by the action of a rotatable feed roll I. This feed roll I! is mounted upon a driven shaft l6, journaled in side bearinls l'l up tanding from the inner ends of arm-like tensioning brackets ll, each of which is carried by vertically disposed adjusting screws ",threaded into theplate ll. About each screw I2 is a tensioning spring 20, which plays against the bracket ll next thereto at its upper side. The plate It is superimposed on a foundation 2| and is adjustable toward and away from the rotor l2 by screws 22, one of which is mounted at each end of the said foundation 2|. The screws are carried by a hanger ledge 22. The pressure of the roll I! is regulated by the screws and springs, l9 and respectively.

At the delivery end of the machine is located a rotatable wire mesh or reticulated cylindrical condenser 24, its center axle being horizontally disposed approximately in the same plane as the rotating axes of the rotor and roll, respectively. The condenser 24 with its end heads 28 rotates about the fixed axle 25 in a clockwise direction, while the rotor and roll rotate in a counterclockwise direction.

Approaching the uppermost portion of the condenser 24 from the delivery end of the machine is an endless belt conveyor 21 for the discharge of finished web created by the machine. The conveyor 21 is trained about supportin rollers 28 and 29, respectively, the former being driven in a clockwise direction, while the roller 2! is an idler.

Between the licker-in rotor l2 and the condenser 24, and next to the latter is a pressure roll 20, its axle 3i being journaled in any suitable manner in the machine.

. Underlying the plate section l0 and the rotor l2 and intersected by the condenser 24 is an air tunnel 22, which at the delivery end of the machine has communication directly with a suction fan 33 of the centrifugal type, that is driven from a suitable source of power.

Within the condenser 24 is a stationary air flue-or duct 34, which has its air flow course aligned with the tunnel 32 to provide a continuation of the latter within the said condenser. The airintake end of the tunnel is denoted at 25.

The tunnel 32 meeting the condenser 24 at diametrically opposite points of the latter has airtight peckings 38 there between, so that there will be no leakage of air from the said tunnel 32 or the air flue or duct 34 at these points.

The conveyor 21 has the same speed surface as does the screen condenser 24 (3 to 31 feet/minute), while the licker-in rotor has 2000-5000 R. P. M., and the feed roll it 1-2 R. P. M. The fan 33 is provided with a horizontal bottom discharge 31 having a discharge volume approximately 2300 cu. ft. per min. and at a speed of approximately 1730 R. P. M. and at V4 S. P.

At 38 is indicated the discharge to the fan 23 of air, dust, dirt and other trash, taken from the fibre mass in theoperati-on of the machine A.

The drives to the rotor l2, the feed roll l5, condenser 24, conveyor roll 28, and the fan 33 can be had from asuitable power source, not shown. The Pressure roll 30, is driven by friction contact with the condenser 24.

In the operation of the machine the mass ll of fibres in an unorganized condition other than in a loose mat formation is introduced onto the plate II, where fibre is advanced by the feeder roll I! to the rotor i2 where the nosing portion l4 holds the picker lap l I firmly so that the single fibres and pull them out of the picker lap, onev by one, rather than in slugs or tufts. The lickerin rotor projects, as shown, so far into the air stream as to narrow appreciablythe air duct at the point of furthest projection therein of the rotor. Thus, the duct has the effective shape and action of a Venturi tube. Due to the high speed of rotationof the rotor the fibres are defied from the rotor by centrifugal force as well as by the suction of the air stream and enter the air stream at a point approximately degrees from the point where they are picked up by the rotor from the lap. The air stream i produced by suction from fan 33 and has a velocity equal to or slightly greater than the surface speed of the rotor II.. The air stream carries the fibres through the tunnel 22 to the condenser 24, and as the condenser slowly rotates the fibres at random are uniformly arranged upon it under suction action of the fan 32; and a web is built up on the condenser which has equal strength in all direction in the plane of the web. This web is pressed into shape by the pressure roll 30. Thence therefore the web is delivered onto the conveyor 21 for subsequent discharge from the machine at the delivery end thereof.

The method involved of manufacturing random textile fibre web consists in subjecting a disorganized mass of fibrous substance to licker-in action, then drawing the licker-in fibre into a confined air suction stream of high velocity, intersecting the air stream for condensing the fibre therein for random arrangement of the fibre with and equal strength and other properties in all directions in the plane of a web thereof, and finally conveying the web to a delivery point, the web being compressed prior to delivery to the conveyor.

If independent power drives to the various driven parts of the machine are employed, these may be the conventional commercial types of V-belts, pulleys, gear speed reducers and voltage control instruments to obtain the desired speeds following the best engineering practices, these being not shown.

What is claimed is:

1. A machine of the kind described, comprising a lap support for unorganized fibrous material, a licker-in roll next to the support for licker-in action on said material, a rotary foramlnoils condenser spaced from the said roll, a tunnel for receiving the material subsequent to the 'licker-in action by the roll and having a continuation extending diametrically through the said condenser, and means for creating high suction action in the tunnel in the direction of and through said condenser for drawing the fibres at random and collecting them on the condenser.

2. The method of forming a fibre web which comprises rotating at high speed a licker-in roll, that has teeth on its periphery, in engagement with a fibrous material to pick up fibres therefrom, creating a high suction action in a direction tangential of the roll at a point spaced from the point of engagement of the roll with the fibrous material, to cause fibres to be doifed from the roll by the centrifugal action of the roll and suction, and intersecting the suction-created air stream at a point in the direction of flow of the stream by a rotary foraminous condenser beyond the roll while passing the air stream diametrically through the condenser, thereby to collect prising a support for fibrousmaterial, a licker-in rotatably mounted adjacent said support and having peripheral teeth formed thereon arranged to engage and pick up fibres from said material, means for feeding the material into the licker-in, means for rotating said licker-in. at relatively high speed, an air duct extending in a direction tangential of the licker-in, said licker-in projecting into the air duct far enough to narrow the air duct appreciably at the licker-in, a foram inous drum spaced from the licker-in and rotating on an axis parallel thereto, said air duct having a portion which passes diametrally through said drum, and means for exerting suction in said air duct to doff fibresfrom said licker-in and carry them onto said drum.

4. A machine for forming a random fibre web comprising a rotary licker-in, means. for feeding fibrous material to the licker-in, a ioraminous condenser mounted to rotate on an axis parallel to the axis of the licker-in, a duct connecting the licker-in with the ioraminous member, a duct. extending diametrically through the condenser and forming a continuation of the first duct, a fan, and an inlet duct connecting the second-named duct with the fan, the center line of the mouth of the last-named duct being substantially aligned with the center lines of the two first-named ducts, and means for rotating said fan at high speed to create a suction current from the licker-in through the condenser to the fan.

5. A machine for forming a random fibre'web comprising a rotary licker-in, means for feeding fibrous material to the licker-in, a foraminous the fibres on the condenser, the maximum speed gagement'of the iicker-in with the fibrous material, and said licker-in being rotatable in the direction oi air flow whereby fibres may be doii'ed from the licker-in by centrifugal force and the flow of air.

6. The method of i'orming a random fibre web which comprises feeding fibrous material into a licker-in while rotating the licker-in at high speed condenser mounted to rotate on an axis parallel to the axis of the licker-in, an air duct into which the licker-in projects and which connects the licker-in with the condenser, an extension of said duct extending diametrically through the 0611- denser, means for inducing high speed air through said two ducts to carry fibres from the licker-in to the condenser, said first-named duct extending approximately tangentially oi the licker-inatapointspacedfromthepointofmand passing a high speed air current past the licker-in approximately tangentially thereof at a point spaced from the point of engagement of the licker-in with the material to don fibres from the licker-in by centrifugal force and the air current, and collecting the dofied fibres on a rotary ioraminous condenser by passing said air current diametrically through the condenser as it rotates.

7. The method of forming a random fibre web which comprises feeding fibrous material into a rotating licker-in, while rotating the licker-in at high -speed in an air stream which flows approximately tangentially of the licker-in at a point spaced approximately ninety degrees from the point of pick-up of the fibres to doif fibres from the licker-in by centrifugal force and the air current, and intersecting said air stream at a point spaced from. the licker-in in the direction of air fiow by a slowly rotating foraminouscondenser, while passing the air stream diametrically thorugh the condenser, said air stream being induced by suction from a source at the'opposite side of the condenser from the licker-in.

- FRANCIS M. BURESH.

aoss man The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

mu'rsn s'rs'ras PATENTS 

